855kbBreadcrumbs
Background information to North West Designation Project
Area of Search Research Report (see right-hand links) informed advice to Board of the Countryside Agency (see Board paper AP 05/18) (42kb word) who agreed in May 2005 to consider further the areas that broadly meet the designation criteria for National Parks.
Areas reviewed in more detail. Report completed on recommended draft boundary for an extension to the Lake District National Park (August 2006) to inform work of the project. Click on the following links to download the report, split into four parts:
All research reports are the consultant's own professional assessment .
Finding the Finest newsletter
Information updates issued throughout the process to keep people informed.
National Park statutory designation criteria
The designation criteria for National Parks are given in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 (as amended):
s. 5(2) The said areas are those extensive tracts of country in England ...as to which it appears to Natural England that by reason of -
(a) their natural beauty, and
(b) the opportunities they afford for open air recreation, having regard both to their character and to their position in relation to centres of population,
it is especially desirable that the necessary measures shall be taken for the purposes mentioned in the last foregoing subsection (s.5(1)).
s. 5(2A) Natural England may -
(a) when applying subsection 2(a) in relation to an area, take into account its wildlife and cultural heritage, and
(b) when applying subsection 2 (b) in relation to that area, take into account the extent to which it is possible to promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of its special qualities by the public.
Section 5(1) referred to in 5(2) contains the purposes of National Parks:
s. 5(1) The provisions of this part of the Act shall have the effect for purpose -
(a) of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and and cultural heritage [of National Parks]; and
(b) of promoting opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of those areas by the public.
